Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-01-15
CONTINUED
CHAPTER XIII
An APPIE JACK RAIn.

tumberful how thirsty / am!7 he said at
length. Its no wonder these Kentuckians
are such bard drinkers There's something
in the atmosphere that makes me drier the
farther, we advance into the state. May be
the pursuit of glory has something desiccating
in it. At least, all the warriors / ever heard
Of seemed composed of clay that required as
much moistening as unsiaked lime. l viii
HE me 90 the hin of frankincense and the
mountain of myrrh; in others words, III go
back where Abe is, and get what's left in the
canteenr
He found his satufnine eomyade sitting on
a log by comfortable fire, restoring buttons
which, like soldiers, had become missing by
reason Of exigeucies of the campaign"
Abe had stuck his needle down into the log
beside him Near were the buttons he had
fshed out of his pocket. and he was laboring
with clumsy fingers and rising temper at an
obdurate bunch of thread
@fve been round looking over the feld.7
said Kent, as he came MP
A contemptuous snort answered him
You ought to've been along saw
great many Interesting things"
40, yes. / spose. Awful interesting. Lot
o dead men laying around in the mud Bout
as interesting, l should say, as spell o set
ting on coroner's jury The things You find
interesting would bore anybody else to
DEATH
Abe gave the obstinate clump a savage
twitch. which only made its knots more re-
bellious and be looked as if strongly tempted
to throw it into the fire.
%Don't do it, Abe" said Kent, with laugh
that irritated ABE. worse still. Threads
thread out here, hundred miles from no
where. You don't know where you'll get any
more Save it, my dear fellow, save it. Per-
chance you may yet sweetly beguile many an
hour of your elegant leisure in unrayeling its
fantastic convolutions with your taper fin
gers, and
HLord Lord!" said Abe with an expression
of deep WEAKNESS, but without looking in
kent's direction, who's pulled the string o
that clack mill and set it TO going. When it
gets started once it rolls out big words like
punkins dropping out o. the tail of wagon
going up hill And there's no way o stop
ping it, either. You've just got to wait till
it runs down
The Proverbs say 50 fittingly that "A fool
delighteth not in wise Instruction. said
Kent, as he stepped around TO the other side
of the fire. His foot fell upon projecting
handed a very hot coal on the back of Abes
hand Abes action followed that of the
twig in the suddenness of his utspringing.
He buried an oath and a firebrand at his
comrade.
This is really becoming domestic said
Kent as he laughinSly dodged. The gentle
amenities could not cluster more thickly
around our iireside, even if we were married y
When Abe resumed his seat he did not
come down exactly upon the spot from which
he had arisen. 1t was a little farther to the
right, where he had stuck the needle He
had forgotten all about it, but he rose with a
howl when it keenly reminded him that like
The star spangled banner, it q was still there =
Don't rise on my account. I beg said
Kent with deprecatory wave of the hand.
ms he buried off to where he could laugh
with safety. A saucy drummer boy, who
neglected this precaution, received cuff from
Abc's heavy hand that thrilled the rest of the
drum corps with delight.
When Abe's wrath subsidized from this eiuI-
lent stage hack 10 its customary one OF sim
ner, Kent vcntured to return.
Say. said he, pulling over the coats and
blankets near The fire, where's that can
teenl"
There it Is by the cups Can't YOU see it
II it was snake it'd bite YOU"
@It's done that already, several times, OF
rather its contents have. You know what
the Bible says, Bitch ike a serpent and
stingeth Ike an adderF All. here it is But
gloomy forebodings seize me; it is sgIspic-
iouisly light Paradoxically, It's lightness in
duces gravity in me. But that pun is en-
tirely too fine-drawn for camp atmosphere
He shook the canteen near bis ear Alas!
no gurgle responds to my fcild caresses:
Canteen, sIavourneen, o. why art thou silent,
Thou voice of my heart!
1t is-woe is met is empty"
"Of course it is-you were the last person at
it"
Il burl that foul imputation back into thy
teeth, base knave. Thou thyself art a very
daughter of horse leech with a canteen of
whisky"
Abe looked at him inquiringly You
must've found some, some place, be said. @of
You wouldn't be so awfully glib It's taken
bout half pint to loosen your tongue so that
it'd run this way. | know YOU"
mo, I've not found a spoonful The elo-
quence of thirst is the only inspiration have
ut present fain would stay its cravings by
quaffing beaker OF mountain distilled hair
curler. Mayhap this humble receptacle con-
tains yet few drops which escaped thy raw
enous thirst"
Kent turned the canteen upside down. and
placed its mouth upon his tongue. 40" he
said, with deep detection, AL that delicious
fluid of yesterday is now ike the Father Of
his Country
"EhEH said Abe, puzzled
Because it is no more-it is no more It
belongs to the unreturning past"
Il say" be continued after moments
pause, lets go out and hunt for some There
must be plenty in this neichborbood Nature
never makes a want without providing s0rnt.-
thing to supply it. Therefore. Judging from
my thirst, this country ought to bc full of
distilleries.
They buckled on their elts. picked up their
guns and started out, directing their steps to
the front
In spite of the sunshine the walk through
the battlefield was depressing. Scattered over
the mountain side were fatigue parties en-
gagged in hunting up the dead and bur-ving
them IN shallow graves hastily dug in clay so
red that it seemed as if saturated with the
blood shed the day before The buriers thrust
ehSh hotihS ithO Tive pJtheiS VI tilt ntsiI VIII
the fiinching, nauseated air of men touching
filth, and took from the garments seeping
with water and blood, watches, letters, am
brotypes, money and trinkets, some of which
they studied to gain clew to the dead mans
identity, some retained as souvenirs but threw
the most back into the grave with an air of
Ioathing. The faces of the dead, with their
staring eyes and open mouths and long, lank
hair, cloyed with the sand and mud thrown
up by the beating rain, looked indescribably
repulsive.
The buriers found it better to begin their
work by covering the features with a cap or
broad brimmed hat. 1t was difficult for
the coarsest of them to fling a spadeful of
dank clay directly upon the wideopen eyes
and seemingly speaking mouth.
Those fellows souls, said Kent, regarding
the corpses, seem TO have left their earthly
houses In such haste that they forgot to close
tho doors md u,indnvvs ofta, fho,u Soma